PESHAWAR: The lawyers boycotted courts across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for sixth day on Monday against the recent amendments to the Code of Civil Procedure 1908 and enactment of an anti-narcotics law by the provincial government.

A joint meeting of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Bar Council and representatives of the bar associations of different districts will be held on Jan 15 (Wednesday) to decide future course of action on the matter.

The indefinite strike of lawyers had begun on Jan 8 on the call of the KP Bar Council.

The lawyers on Monday stayed away from courts, including Peshawar High Court in Peshawar and its benches in Abbottabad, Dera Ismail Khan, Bannu and Swat.

The bar council had decided that the boycott of courts would continue until the government withdrew the controversial amendments or starting of meaningful negotiations by the provincial government.

Decide tomorrow future course of action against changes to drug, civil laws

The bar council also warned all its members to abide by the decision of strike and warned if that didn’t happen, strict action would be taken against violators of the decision.

“Some members of Insaf lawyers Forum had approached us for negotiations and would let us know about any proposal from the government on Tuesday (Jan 14),” said KP Bar Council vice-chairman Saeed Khan.

He told Dawn that the lawyers were not in favour of strikes but as those controversial amendments to CCP were against the people’s interest, they had to boycott courts.

Mr Saeed said the lawyers were ready for meaningful negotiations with the government on the issue.

Last month, the lawyers had observed a strike from Dec 9 to 11 on the issue.

The KP government had enacted the KP Code of Civil Procedure (Amendment) Act, 2019, last Oct making several important changes to the colonial era law claiming that they would help provide speedy justice to litigants in civil cases.

It also enacted the KP Control of Narcotics Substance Act, 2019, repealing the Federal Control of Narcotics Substance Act, 1997, within the province to the extent of cultivation, possession, selling, purchasing, delivery and transportation of narcotics.

The KP Bar Council claimed that through CCP amendments, one forum of appeal against a judgment of civil judge was abolished and that instead of district judge, appeal would be filed in the high court.

It added that the move was a discrimination against people of the province compared to those living in other provinces.

The introduction of new narcotics law in the province did away with the bail provision in the narcotics-related offences asking the accused to move the high court for bail instead of the special court.

Published in Dawn, January 14th, 2020